Introduction
North and South is the title of three American television miniseries broadcast on the ABC network in 1985, 1986, and 1994.
Set before, during, and immediately after the American Civil War, they are based on the 1980s trilogy of novels North and South by John Jakes.






Outline
June 1861 to 21 July 1861.
Orry and Charles, now officers in the Confederate Army, leave the Main family plantation for the war in Virginia. Orry, despite having been against secession, becomes a general and military aide to Confederate President Jefferson Davis in the Confederate capital of Richmond. Meanwhile, George and Billy are in Washington, D.C., where they are officers in the US Army. Billy joins the US Sharpshooters regiment, while George becomes a military aide to US President Abraham Lincoln. Charles, a Confederate cavalry officer, meets Augusta Barclay, a Virginia belle who smuggles medicine for the southern soldiers. Virgilia wants to work as a nurse at a Washington, D.C. military hospital and asks Congressman Sam Greene, a fellow abolitionist, for help. Orry’s cruel and manipulative sister Ashton meets her match in Elkanah Bent, who sees the Civil War as a great way to get rich by smuggling forbidden luxury goods through the US Navy blockade of the South. Bent and Ashton quickly become lovers, while Ashton’s politician husband, James Huntoon, is unaware of his wife’s adultery. With Orry and Charles gone to war, Justin kidnaps Madeline from the Main family plantation and burns the cotton barn; Orry’s mother is injured trying to stop the fire. The First Battle of Bull Run takes place with George and Constance getting caught up in the panicked aftermath as they reluctantly watch from a distance. The South is the winner.
North and South Series
You can find a full index and overview of North and South here.
Production & Filming Details
- Release Date: 1986.
- Rating: 15.
- Running Time: 90 minutes.
- Country: US.
- Language: English.